


The Let Down

by Jadzialove



Category: Harry Potter - Rowling
Genre: M/M, snarry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-01-29
Updated: 2012-01-29
Packaged: 2017-10-30 06:54:02
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,071
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/328988
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jadzialove/pseuds/Jadzialove
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>All good things must come to an end.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Let Down

**Author's Note:**

  * For [RaeWhit](https://archiveofourown.org/users/RaeWhit/gifts).



> Birthday fic for joanwilder. Many thanks to blamebrampton who overcame great pain and suffering to do the eleventh hour beta work, due to an unfortunate Nerf Torpedo incident, which resulted in a broken finger. She is a trooper and a star of one-handed typing!

  


* * *

  
  
**The Let Down**  
  
  
"It's over, Potter."  
  
The words hit Harry like a physical blow. "But…"   
  
Severus closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose in a tired fashion. "No. No buts—it's well past time by my estimation."  
  
Not ready to give up so easily, Harry argued, "Couldn't we just—"   
  
"No." Severus cut him off. "It is, in fact, well past time by the entire _world's_ estimation, for that matter."  
  
"Oh, go on—d'you think you might be exaggerating just a bit? The _whole world_ … "  
  
"No, not at all. It is pathetic and more than a little unhealthy to hold on to it any longer."  
  
Harry stared forlornly, unable to form a reply. He'd known it was coming—for a while now, if he were honest with himself—but he just wasn't ready. Not yet.  
  
He pulled out his wand, poking it into the sad, drooping, dried up thing. The nearest faerie glared at him with deep loathing, and a brightly colored ball chose that moment to abandon its post on a sagging branch, hitting the carpet with a soft noise and rolling to a stop, several inches away.   
  
_Traitor_ , he accused it silently.   
  
It appeared the entire world actually _was_ ready.   
  
All but Harry.  
  
Severus's voice gentled, the incongruity of it always disarming to hear, "It's the twenty-third, Harry. Of January. Nearly a month has passed; this rubbish," he gestured sharply around the room, "surpassed garish two weeks ago."  
  
How could he explain? He couldn't much understand it himself, this driving need for that _Christmas-y_ feeling. The magic, so different from everyday magic, and so terribly fleeting, that filled the world for a few days every December. He'd never known it as a child, and even after he'd escaped his relatives' tender mercies, apart from that first Christmas at Hogwarts, he'd never really been able to enjoy the season properly.  
  
Okay, maybe, as an adult, he sometimes got a tad bit carried away, but, inevitably, Christmas would come and go too quickly, all of the trimmings packed away, leaving the world less cheery, less jolly, less magical. And to Harry's thinking, _this_ Christmas, their first one together, was especially momentous, and therefore, deserved to be held on to for as long as possible.  
  
He opened his mouth to marshal an argument for just one more night, but another ornament hit the floor, as nature finally seemed to assert itself over the preservation charms he'd been casting infrequently on the tree for weeks.  
  
Defeated, he looked sadly at Severus and relented, "All right."  
  
Days' of festive decorating, dismantled in minutes—the exhausted faeries gratefully dispatched—and their living room was returned to order.  
  
Severus sighed in relief and sat down in his usual stiff manner, despite the fact that the sofa was of the large and squashy variety. Harry couldn't help thinking the room looked barren without the holiday decorations, and he stood in the middle of the vast, empty space, lost.  
  
"Oh, for pity's sake, Potter, stop looking as if someone has kicked your dog."  
  
"I haven't got a dog," Harry said, knowing it sounded petulant.  
  
Rolling his eyes, Severus gestured with his hand. "Come here."  
  
At the age of twenty-four, he'd managed to achieve a respectable five-foot-eleven in height, but Harry couldn't help feeling small and childish as he complied.  
  
Severus took his hand and tugged. Knowing what he meant by it, Harry straddled Severus's legs, settling on his knees.   
  
The face before him was not any prettier up close, though Harry loved every craggy inch of it, but the harsh features softened in understanding, completely disarming him once again. "As you know, I have never been—nor shall I ever be, I should think—sentimental about Yule. However, if it helps you to get beyond this melancholy, you should know, this past season has been without equal, in my experience."  
  
Harry basked in the sentiment, knowing how hard it was for Severus to admit, however vague it might've been. He leant forward and kissed him for it.  
  
When they broke apart, Severus said, "I am given to understand that after the holidays, some people experience a sense of loss, a post-Christmas let down—"  
  
Smiling, Harry cut in, "You've been talking to Hermione."  
  
Severus scowled, but Harry put two fingers firmly over the thin lips before the recently tamed razor tongue could issue something they'd both regret. "No. I'm not mocking. I know how difficult it was for you to go to her, and I understand that you must've been really concerned to have resorted to that, and I appreciate it more than I can tell you."  
  
"Hmm." Was Severus's response, though he looked mollified and he continued as if Harry hadn't interrupted, "And while you, in your inimitable fashion, have managed to drag this out longer than any other human on record…"  
  
The warmth Severus's concern had created lost a bit of its rosy glow, and Harry narrowed his eyes.  
  
"…it appears that it is quite normal to feel this way."  
  
"You're awfully good at this feelings stuff—have you considered becoming a therapist?"  
  
The man actually growled, but it was rather more good-naturedly than Harry would have expected. "My point is, _brat_ , there are measures we can take that might aid your adjustment to this room, now that its seasonal adornments are gone." He finished the statement with a significant look that Harry had no trouble interpreting.   
  
Harry leant forward, rolling his hips toward Severus's and pressing against him—neither of them yet aroused, but the suggestion alone had Harry stirring. "Oh?" he said in a husky voice. "Tell me about these _measures_ , you propose."  
  
Severus raised an eyebrow at him, smirking. "Perhaps it is best if I demonstrate."  
  
He put a firm hand on the back of Harry's neck and pulled him down, capturing his mouth hungrily, plunging an insistent tongue in between Harry's willingly parted lips. Harry moaned lightly in pleasure as Severus's tongue slid and twined with his own.  
  
Although this was to be Severus's 'demonstration,' Harry took the initiative, and without missing a lick, or the smallest nip of Severus's bottom lip, silently banished their clothing.  
  
"Impatient," said Severus, between kisses, though his tone was far from admonishing. Then he made a show of his own wandless magic, flicking a wrist at the fireplace and conjuring a blaze that bathed the room in warmth and golden light, chasing away the shadows created by the setting sun outside the windows.  
  
"Nice." Harry grinned, impressed, then bent his head down, eager to taste more of Severus. He began feasting on ear, neck, shoulder, throat, sucking in a breath when Severus's left hand cupped one of his cheeks, then slid into the crease, while Severus's right hand took hold of both them, now hard and ready.  
  
The twin sensations were driving Harry higher and higher. Severus's large, warm hand stroked them firmly, and he must have cast a lubrication spell, as his finger slid inside Harry with ease, working him open as two other fingers join it in succession. Then he crooked one of them and Harry cried out, "Ungh! Yeah, right there."  
  
Harry rose slightly, pushing forward into Severus's hand and then back on the fingers, until it wasn't enough. "More. Please, please, Severus. More," he begged, feeling no shame in his urgency.  
  
Severus grunted, then stopped his actions long enough to help Harry lift up, then guided his hard cock to take the place of his magnificent fingers, hissing in approval as Harry eased down slowly with a grateful, needy moan.   
  
Once fully seated, Harry leant forward, capturing Severus's mouth in a hungry kiss. Severus's hands gripped Harry's hips, but weren't demanding, letting Harry set the pace. Holding on to Severus's shoulders, Harry began rocking, reveling in the feel of Severus moving inside him. Leaning backward as much as he dared, Harry managed to hit the perfect angle, and using his strong legs, he changed the rhythm he'd created to something more forceful, something wild that was slowly taking control.  
  
Severus's face was set hard with determination, supporting Harry, but the fathomless black eyes were hot, alight with desire, and Harry wanted to fall into them as love washed over him, golden and molten. The building fire within him reached a critical mass, and, without a touch to himself, Harry cried out, "Oh god, Severus! Ungh, gonna come! Gonna come!"   
  
"Come, then. Come for me, Harry." Severus demanded in a smoky, black velvet voice, and with a drawn out moan, Harry did just that, spurting hot and slick between them, until he had nothing left to offer.  
  
Leaning forward with his last bit of energy, Harry sagged limply against Severus, momentarily dazed. Then his world shifted suddenly, as Severus, with a feral growl and in a single swift, athletic move, had them on the floor, with Harry underneath him, managing to do so without separating them. It was a move so thrilling, it sent a surge of something through Harry that his sated body could not accommodate, no matter how desperately it wished to comply.  
  
Severus stilled for a moment, his eyes searching Harry's face, silently questioning. Harry nodded, letting Severus know he was ready, and at the same time, felt another surge, this one of tenderness, in response to the gesture, knowing the restraint the man had used in order to be so considerate.  
  
With Harry's approval, Severus pulled back, then plunged, moving his hips in earnest, and Harry watched his face as Severus got lost in the sensation. The pounding increased, and Harry raised his hips to meet Severus's now powerful thrusts, clenching around him as he withdrew, making encouraging noises as he slid back inside. Though he'd already found his own completion, Harry found himself getting lost in the wave of Severus's desire.   
  
Reaching up, he squeezed Severus's peaked nipples, rolling them between his thumbs and forefingers. Severus gasped, thrusting harder and faster, and finally, Harry could it see bloom on his face just before Severus stilled and cried out, pulsing his warm release into him.   
  
As far as Harry was concerned, there was very little better than Severus's warm weight pressing him into whatever handy surface they'd used, and he lay in languorous stupor for a short time, stroking Severus's back while his breathing calmed. Then, humming with satisfaction, he tightened his legs and rolled them so he was partially lying atop Severus.   
  
The room truly did seem less cold and empty. As it was fully dark outside, Severus flicked his hand outward, and the room was filled with more soft light as the lamps around the room came to life, and that, added to the fire glow, made it downright cozy. "I think you were right. I feel much better about this room."  
  
Severus turned his head, so he was facing him, and raised an eyebrow. "Why ever would you doubt me?"  
  
"I didn't doubt you." Perhaps because he had a sort of ingrained need to live dangerously, but mostly because it was fun to watch Severus's reactions, he added, "And, really, Valentine's Day is only a few weeks away, there's _a lot_ I could do in here for that."  
  
The horrified look on Severus's face was entirely worth whatever the man was about to say.   
  
"You absolutely will not festoon this room in cupids and fat red hearts!"  
  
Knowing it was horrible, but unable to resist, Harry replied, "Hmm. Well, I'm not opposed to more fat red _something_ in this room."  
  
Severus grimaced and rolled his eyes, for the second time that day. "That was atrocious."  
  
Laughing, Harry said, "Yes, it was. I'll leave the wit to you from now on." He rested his head on Severus's chest and sighed in contentment, lulled by Severus's hand, which was rubbing circles gently on his back. He looked up at Severus's face. "Thank you."  
  
Severus kissed him softly. "It was my pleasure."  
  
The warm sincerity on his face and in his voice caused Harry's breath to catch and he planted a kiss on his chest as he snuggled back down on Severus.   
  
He knew now; that feeling he'd been so desperately clinging to hadn't been about the tinsel or the holly or the faerie lights at all. He'd still decorate for Christmas each year, and likely, the accusations of overdoing it would become part of their tradition, but with Severus, he'd never feel the let down again.  
  
  
xOx


End file.
